The book had an interesting concept and some well written poetry. The plot was a little slow moving and felt repetitious at times. I thought that way it dealt with grief and moving forward was inventive.

The Art of Taxidermy

I am always a little hesitant of books written in verse as there seems to be a recent surge in the genre. Often times I feel that the stories told do not match the genre and would have been better told as prose but this is absolutely not the case with The Art of Taxidermy. The Art of Taxidermy follows Lottie and tells the story of how she “fell in love with death”, exploring loss within Lottie’s family and how they all grieve/ cope. Poetry was the perfect medium to show this, specifically Lottie’s observations and descriptions of nature as Kernot’s style reads like a story, almost like a beautiful fairytale (just without the princess). Kernot found ways to include scientific names, animal terminology, sketches, and some history towards the end of the book, that educate the reader while still keeping them intrigued in Lottie’s story. The Art of Taxidermy brings beauty to death.

I feel it is important to note that the poems do at times get a little descriptive about death and decay which may make some readers queasy or uncomfortable, but this is necessary to understand Lottie’s character. There were also a few times where I had difficulty distinguishing between quotes and narration when a poem included quotes but this was easy to move past. I still loved this book and gave it 4 out of 5 stars (but probably closer to 4.5 out of 5 stars).

Charlotte, or Lottie, is fascinated by death. Her mother died when Lottie was young. She collects animal carcasses. She wants to make them beautiful again. Her aunt thinks she’s killing the animals, she thinks is not right for a young woman. Her father is a professor and doesn’t see the problem with her fascination. But when her aunt throws out her babies, Lottie’s world comes crashing down. Can she convince her family that she isn’t sick in the head?
This was a story of love and death and coming to terms with what life brings.
I didn’t know what to expect from The Art of Taxidermy at all. I only knew it was a novel written in prose. But I really enjoyed this one. It was a quick read but I really enjoyed following along with Lottie on her journey dealing with her mother’s death. I’d recommend this to anyone that likes a dark, meaningful read written in a unique style.

This was a heartbreaking book and when I requested it on Netgalley, I did not expect it to be in verse but I think it was done really well. I got really into the story and sped through it in a couple of hours.

I didn't realise that the writing of this book will be different. It was definitely a good reading experience. I really enjoyed how the author dealt with writing about grief in this book. It's raw and powerful, a very different approach to most books I've read that talk about grief.

I have to say though that it took me a while to truly enjoy it but overall it is a beautiful book!

The main thing that attracted me to this book was the gorgeous cover. The second thing was the addition in the summary about it being a book exploring the ways people grieve. I didn't realize it was written in verse, a format I'm not too familiar with, but despite that, I still found myself being enthralled by Lottie's story and her journey as well as that of her family.

The Art of Taxidermy follows Lottie as she discovers the preserved remains of dead animals and takes them as her treasures along with her sister, Annie. It also follows her the members of her family from the eyes of Lottie and the different ways they grieve the death of their loved ones. Lottie herself has lost her mother, but she finds comfort in the remains that she finds. Lottie's Aunt Hilda doesn't approve of this because it isn't proper for a girl to play with dead things, but Lottie's father does. He takes her to the museum where she learns about taxidermy and the art of bringing things that were once dead back to life. This starts her journey throughout the rest of the story and the lessons she learns. There's also a bit of historical fiction in this since Lottie's family are from Germany and lived in Australia during World War II.

Lottie's continuous desire to find dead animals and their beauty is something that is gorgeously done in this book. From the way the author crafts the poems to the words she chooses, it brought a beauty to death that was also from the perspective of a grieving 12 year old girl. It also isn't afraid to talk about the death of a loved one and the different ways we cope with it. The Art of Taxidermy, though short, still manages to explore four different people and we see how they each grieve. One of them closes up about their lost one, another goes to the place to mourn them, one chooses to ignore the dead's belongings and hides them, and another tries to know who they were and understand them when they were alive.

The Art of Taxidermy is a story about coping with death and the beauty surrounding it. It tells us that mourning for our dead is okay and there are different ways we cope with it as humans. It tells us keeping them alive is how we celebrate the dead and remember them. This is the primary plot of the story, and it does it well.

Overall, The Art of Taxidermy is a beautiful read with whimsical read and gorgeous illustrations that will keep the reader enchanted throughout it. I would recommend this to people who are fans of verse writing and those seeking a quick read that still holds a powerful message.

This was a beautifully written book dealing with death and grief. I feel that people, especially Americans, are way too squeamish and scared of death. It is one of the most natural things in the universe; everyone dies. Yet if people talk about it too much, or are interested in death related hobbies such as taxidermy, others deem them weird, death obsessive, or even mentally ill, as was the case in this book. Lottie’s aunt thought she was being too weird, that she had issues, that she wasn’t being lady like. But Lottie was dealing with grief and death in her own way. She loved the bones and the animals she collected. She realized that death can still be beautiful and understood, and she knew that this was helping her to cope. She didn’t think was she was doing was weird or wrong, and it wasn’t. It brought her closer to those she had lost, and helped her deal with their deaths. If more people realized that talking about death doesn’t make you automatically depressed, that it doesn’t make you weird, then maybe we can move past our fear of it.

The first few pages of The Art of Taxidermy confused me as I didn’t know it was a verse novel. What I thought was just an introductory poem, was really the start of the actual novel. There were so few words that I found it difficult to create an image for myself. I’m a very visual person when reading, and I need to be able to make the story into a sort of personal movie in my head to be able to enjoy it. That is very difficult to do with this type of novel, though the poetry was beautifully written.

I wish this had been an actual novel, because the story itself was very captivating as well as sad. It’s about Lottie, a young girl who is descendant from Germans who fled the war, but who now lives in Australia and is obsessed with death. When you continue reading, you realise that she has had to experience so much death in her young life already that it is bound to have a certain influence on her. She turns to taxidermy as a way to prove to herself that death is not the end. Though her aunt finds this repulsive, her father sees the beauty in it, and encourages her to study the science.

Though the poems were quite short, they gave away plenty of information and in the end they made up one complete story. There were many little details tucked away in the lines that created beautiful images. I just wish there was more to read.

An utterly engaging and intriguing narrative of poems about a child--later a young woman--and her ability to see beauty in death, despite the social and familial pressures not to do so. The writing is evocative and visual--and visceral--and the reading experience that it provides is unique and lasting.

As this book was written in prose, it took me a little while to adjust. Once I got the hang of it, the book flew by! I finished it in two days, and I ended up LOVING the writing style.

The plot of The Art of Taxidermy is very unique! A young girl develops an interest in the dead and how to recreate them through taxidermy. Many other characters take this hobby differently and our young narrator struggles to enjoy her craft and fit in with her family.

The story seems simple but throughout the novel, little twists are dropped. It was clever, beautiful, and quick! I am definitely interested to see what Sharon Kernot writes next!

Went into this not really knowing anything about it and I have to say it was unlike anything I’ve ever read. It was a whole take on grief and lotties obsession with taxidermy being about wanting to preserve and show the beauty in death.

Books written in verse are some of my favourites, and although normally books like this would have me sobbing, something about this just didn’t connect with me. However would still recommend it as was a quick and interesting read!

Judging a book by its cover. Something we are always told not to do, but I did. I picked this book because of how bright and flowery the cover looked. However, that was a mistake. Don’t get me wrong, I loved this book, but like the main character, it has a dark side.
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Enamored with death, “Lottie” collects dead specimens, much to the disappointment of her aunt. Now she’s not alone in this hobby, with a childhood friend and a new boy in her class, they make quite the trio in expanding her collection.

The Art of Taxidermy is a beautiful, quick and poetical read. You follow the journey of the grief main character Lottie goes through after her mother died. Lottie starts getting interested in dead animals and bringing them back to life in the form of taxidermy.

The journey of Lottie’s grief is very interesting. It’s unique and unusual and offers a different perspective. She’s misunderstood by the other characters, but as a reader, her actions and thoughts make sense. Het father and aunt, the people with whom she lives, both react entirely different to Lottie’s peculiar behavior. Both of them are grieving too and want what’s best for Lottie. They only act it out in different ways, which makes them feel human. I do have to say that I was getting annoyed by how many times Lottie’s aunt says: “This is wrong, Wolfgang!”.

Lottie is not a character I could relate well with, but it was easy to live along with her and her emotions. It also took me some time to figure out what the age of Lottie was and when the book took place. This made it more difficult to get a whole picture. These things are mentioned later in the book though.

One thing I thought worked out really well in this book was that there are some mysteries that aren’t solved until halfway through. In the beginning, a character named Annie is always by Lottie´s side. Other characters don´t seem to notice Annie. It makes you wonder if Annie is an imaginary friend or a ghost. And if she´s a ghost, how did she die?

Another aspect I really liked was the contrast. Sharon Kernot uses a lot of contrast in her story, mostly in small details like the color of hair or the material of a photo frame. It helps to create just the right ambiance and makes the book feel emotionally right. I’m also a fan of the extreme details. There are quite some dead animals in this book and their decay is described in specific ways. It sets the right tone, but also a warning here that this book isn’t for you if dead animals creep you out!

All by all, I really enjoyed this book. It’s beautifully written and I can recommend it if you aren’t squeamish and you’re looking for a quick, emotional read.

A unique, touching verse novel that explores a child's way of coping with death.

Charlotte is a young girl living in Australia, and her mother passed away long ago. The girl's life is lonely and simple, and she begins filling her time with collecting dead creatures she stumbles across in the Australian countryside—a dead crow, for instance. She cares for them, and later on develops an interest in taxidermy as means to preserve them—her own way of resurrecting the creatures, bringing lost ones back to life. Her macabre hobby doesn't sit right with her worried Aunt Hilda, who wants her to be a "normal" child.

I had no idea what a verse novel was when I requested this book, so for fellow uncultured peasants, allow me to explain that it means narrative poetry. I am not someone usually entertained by poetry as a medium, but this book was a comfortable read that touched upon subjects that interest me: death, coping with grief, the internment camps during WW2 and the treatment of Aboriginals in Australia. The prose flows just right, and there were some lovely passages that lingered with me.

There are a few passages that may be too gory for certain readers, so beware if you're the squeamish sort. But it's nothing extreme, in my opinion, and adds to the narrative rather than detracts.

This is a verse novel in which a young woman deals with her mother's death through taxidermy. Charlotte finds solace in revitalizing animals. She feels as if she is giving them purpose as well as bringing them back to life.

This book is beautiful and like none other I have ever read. Exquisitely written and worth the read. Cannot wait for it to be re-published!

Not my usual style of fiction. I received this book not realising it was written in verse. While the poetry was beautiful, at times I felt like it detracted focus from the story. Recommending.

**Disclaimer: I received an early copy of The Art of Taxidermy from NetGalley and Text Publishing for review purposes.  Thank you to them for this opportunity.

The Art of Taxidermy by Sharon Kernot is a young adult novel in verse.  It falls into the genre of historical fiction as it takes place in Australia is a time period that follows World War II.  This book comes out on August 23rd, 2019.  I gave it 4 stars on GoodReads.
Here is the summary from GoodReads:
Lottie collects dead creatures and lovingly cares for them, hoping to preserve them, to save them from disintegration. Her father understands—Lottie has a scientific mind, he thinks. Her aunt wants it to stop, and she goes to cruel lengths to make sure it does. 
And her mother? Lottie’s mother died long ago. And Lottie is searching for a way to be close to her.
The Art of Taxidermy is a heartbreaking verse novel exploring love and death, grief and beauty, and the ways we try to make sense of it all.

I am always so impressed with novels in verse.  It amazes me the way that an author can convey so much emotion and details about what happens based on so many less words than the typical book contains.  However, sometimes details can be lost and things like flashbacks can be confusing.  I had some moments like that with The Art of Taxidermy.  Certain things that I thought had had happened, hadn't and there was the occasional flashback that did confuse me.  However, Kernot's use of language was absolutely gorgeous.  She had some really interesting figures of speech and I really liked the way that she played with words.  

The story itself was interesting.  It is primarily about death and grief and Lottie, the protagonist/narrator, dealing with these things and ultimately her fascination with death and decay.  It was really cool to me that Kernot was able to make a story about death so beautiful.  I really enjoyed watching Lottie grow and learn about herself and her interests, and it was really interesting to watch her learn about her family.  

The story was unique for me, because it occupied a perspective that I don't often read about or hear about.  The story, as mentioned previously, takes place in Australia after World War II.  Lottie's family is German, and they immigrated to Australia prior to the war because they didn't like how things were going in Germany.  The story discusses how Lottie's father and Opa were put into an internment camp called Loveday during the war, simply because they were German.  The book doesn't go in depth with this, but it's interesting to read about the lingering damage it left the family.  Additionally, Lottie is treated poorly at school because of her German heritage.  Personally, I have German heritage.  My Oma and Opa immigrated to Canada after the war, so it's a bit of a different experience and I was never bullied for having German heritage, but I could understand the reactions she had to how she was treated.  It was just a point of personal connection I had with her.

The description and imagery in this book is really good.  There was a lot of rather morbid imagery because, as one may have guessed from the title and summary, Lottie is quite fascinated with death and becomes quite interested in the idea of taxidermy.  At one point she decides to become a taxidermist and tries to learn how to do it on her own.  There is a lot of talk of her finding dead animals and wanting to keep them, so if you're squeamish, this probably isn't the book for you.  However, even just reading about Lottie's fascination is fascinating.  It's not a topic that I particularly relate to so it's really interesting to get a different perspective on it.

Ultimately, the depiction of grief is the real standout from this novel.  Lottie's mother is dead, and so is her opa and other figures in her life.  Lottie has to learn to come to terms with these things, and that's what the novel is about.  However, she's not the only one as the remaining members of her family also need to learn to cope with their losses.  These moments in the novel are particularly poignant.  

So, while this wasn't my favourite novel in verse that I've ever read, it was a lovely, well written story that educated me and it made me feel.  It was a quick read as well, and the pacing was really good.  So when August 23rd comes around, you should consider picking yourself up a copy.  Thank you again to Text Publishing and NetGalley for this opportunity, and thank you to you for reading this.

Blog review coming soon.

This book, written in verse, details Charlotte's experience with grief, loss, and the resurrection of life.
The Art of Taxidermy absolutely destroyed me. The haunting back story, the intimate look at a young girls handle on the death of her mother, and the disapproval of her Aunt.
Largely romanticizing life, this book follows Charlotte on a beautifully written journey as she comes to terms with a traumatic loss, through the discovery and practice of taxidermy.
Would highly recommend.
My rating : 4 stars

Oh man, what an interesting little book. Going in, I didn’t know it was written in verse so it took a little while to adjust to that format of writing. This is a cute, if not strange, story. ⁣
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The story follows Lottie as she explores her newfound love of taxidermy. Personally, I’ve always found taxidermy a bit gross and creepy, but this book actually changed my view. Lottie has a way of describing the art of taxidermy as just that - art. Giving new life to something that has passed. ⁣
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This book is beautiful and weird and heartbreaking at times. It’s a true representation of growing up in a world full of loss, and finding ways to cope with your grief. ⁣
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I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a light story dealing with tough topics. ⁣
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I wasn't aware that this book was written in verse before I started reading it, but I really enjoyed it. I loved the character of Lottie and how passionately she cares about dead things and their preservation and how it affects her family life.

Having the story in verse gave way to hearing both the inner voice of Lottie as well as moving the story forward, which sometimes went in a way that I wasn't expecting.

Overall this was a fun, relatively quick read that I really enjoyed and would be a good introduction to verse novels.